February 1942

[February 1], 1942 (Sunday)

• Marshalls-Gilberts raids
• Vidkun Quisling took office as Minister President of Norway.
• Neil Ritchie ordered a general withdrawal of British forces to the Gazala Line to avoid being encircled.
• The Germans switched their naval codes from Hydra to the more complex Triton.
• National Freedom Day was observed for the first time in the United States, commemorating Abraham Lincoln's signing of the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on February 1, 1865.
• Presidential elections were held in Chile, won by Juan Antonio Ríos of the Radical Party.
• Born:
• *Bibi Besch, actress, in Vienna, Austria ;
• *Terry Jones, actor, comedian, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy troupe, in Colwyn Bay, Wales

  [February 2], 1942 (Monday)

• Joseph Stilwell was designated Chief of Staff to Supreme Commander, China Theater, and was directed to "increase the effectiveness of United States assistance to the Chinese government for the prosecution of the war and to assist in improving the combat efficiency of the Chinese Army."
• German submarine U-581 was sunk in the mid-Atlantic Ocean by depth charges from the British destroyer HMS Westcott.
• United States tanker was torpedoed, shelled and eventually sunk about east of the mouth of Delaware River by German submarine.
• U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to approve a $500 million loan to China.
• The drama film Kings Row starring Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings and Ronald Reagan premiered in New York City.
• Born: Graham Nash, rock and folk singer and songwriter, in Blackpool, Lancashire, England
• Died:
• *Leonetto Cappiello, 66, Italian-born French poster art designer;
• *Daniil Kharms, 36, Soviet poet, writer and dramatist

  [February 3], 1942 (Tuesday)

• The Battle of Port Moresby began over Port Moresby, Papua.
• The Battle of Ambon ended in Japanese victory.
• Erwin Rommel's forces captured Timimi in Libya. The British Eighth Army fell back and began establishing what would soon be known as the Gazala Line.
• The British cargo liner Talthybius was bombed and sunk at Singapore by Japanese aircraft. She was later salvaged and put back into service as Taruyasu Maru.
• The British government set maximum prices for clothing. A suit could not be sold for more than £4 18s 8d.
• German submarine U-165 was commissioned.
• Died: Rolf Kaldrack, 28, German fighter ace

  [February 4], 1942 (Wednesday)

• The Battle of Makassar Strait was fought, resulting in Japanese victory.
• Erwin Rommel's forces entered Derna, Libya.
• The U.K. Ministry of War Production was created and Lord Beaverbrook was appointed its first head.
• German submarine U-258 was commissioned.
• United States tanker was torpedoed and sunk about southeast of Atlantic City by German submarine.
• Died: Joseph Henry Pendleton, 81, United States Marine Corps general

  [February 5], 1942 (Thursday)

• The British corvette HMS Arbutus was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean by German submarine U-136.
• The Canadian troopship RMS Empress of Asia was sunk by Japanese dive bombers near Singapore.
• Iran broke off diplomatic relations with Vichy France.
• German submarine U-608 was commissioned.
• United States tanker was torpedoed, shelled and sunk about off the Delaware coast by German submarine.
• Hermann Göring the Head of the German Luftwaffe returned from his visit in Italy.
• Born: Roger Staubach, American NFL quarterback and Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinee; in Cincinnati, Ohio

  [February 6], 1942 (Friday)

• German submarine U-82 was depth charged and sunk northeast of the Azores by British warships.
• Amin al-Husseini arrived in Italy from Germany with Rashid Ali al-Gaylani and conferred with Benito Mussolini.
• Mustafa el-Nahhas became Prime Minister of Egypt for the fourth time.
• Born: Ahmad-Jabir Ahmadov, professor and academic, in Nukha, Azerbaijan

  [February 7], 1942 (Saturday)

• Rommel halted his counteroffensive near Gazala. In a little over two weeks he had retaken almost all the ground that the British Eighth Army had taken at the end of 1941.
• Vidkun Quisling abolished the Norwegian constitution and established a dictatorship.
• The War Shipping Administration was established in the United States.
• Uruguay defeated Argentina to win the South American Championship of football in Montevideo.
• "A String of Pearls" by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra hit #1 on the Billboard singles charts.
• Born: Gareth Hunt, actor, in Battersea, London, England

  [February 8], 1942 (Sunday)

• The Battle of Singapore began with the Battle of Sarimbun Beach.
• The Demyansk Pocket was created when a pocket of German troops was encircled by the Red Army around Demyansk south of Leningrad.
• Died: Fritz Todt, 50, German engineer and senior Nazi official

  [February 9], 1942 (Monday)

• The Battle of Sarimbun Beach ended in Japanese victory.
• The Battle of Kranji began during the battle for Singapore.
• Chiang Kai-shek and his wife arrived in India for a thirteen-day visit. Their arrival was kept a secret until the following day.
• The ocean liner USS Lafayette capsized and sank in New York Harbor whilst under conversion to a troopship.
• Japanese destroyer Natsushio sank south of Makassar one day after being torpedoed by the American submarine S-37.
• Born: Carole King, composer and singer-songwriter, in Manhattan, New York
• Died: Lauri Kristian Relander, 58, 2nd President of Finland

  [February 10], 1942 (Tuesday)

• The Battle of Kranji ended in Japanese victory.
• The Battle of Bukit Timah began in the battle for Singapore.
• The Canadian corvette HMCS Spikenard was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean by German submarine U-136.
• A two-day meeting between Ion Antonescu and Adolf Hitler began at the Wolf's Lair. Antonescu pledged to commit large Romanian forces to the upcoming offensive on the Eastern Front but asked for modern equipment as a condition. Antonescu also warned that Romania still claimed all of Transylvania, but promised not to press this demand until the end of the war. Hitler was non-committal, but later instructed all German officials to be careful in their dealings with Hungary and Romania since both would be called upon to make more sacrifices for the Axis war effort.
• Soap rationing began in Britain.
• The last civilian car rolled off the assembly line at the River Rouge Ford plant before the company switched production over to military vehicles such as service trucks and jeeps. Reporters and photographers were on hand to document the event.
• Born: Howard Mudd, football player and coach, in Midland, Michigan

  [February 11], 1942 (Wednesday)

• The Germans launched the Channel Dash, codenamed Operation Cerberus, with the goal of running a Kriegsmarine squadron of ships from Brest, France through a British blockade to their home bases in Germany.
• The American submarine USS Shark was sunk in the Pacific Ocean by the Japanese destroyer Yamakaze.
• Jacob Epstein's huge new sculpture depicting the Biblical story of Jacob wrestling with the angel went on show in London. His treatment of religious subject matter in a primitivist style was controversial for its time.
• German submarines U-518 and U-609 were commissioned.
• Born: Otis Clay, R&B and soul singer, in Waxhaw, Mississippi
• Died: Ugo Pasquale Mifsud, 52, two-time Prime Minister of Malta

  [February 12], 1942 (Thursday)

• The Battle of Bukit Timah ended in Japanese victory.
• The British destroyer HMS Maori was bombed and sunk by the Luftwaffe in the Malta Grand Harbour.
• A state funeral was held for Fritz Todt in Berlin. Hitler spoke at the service and then posthumously made Todt the first recipient of a newly created award, the German Order.
• German submarine U-661 was commissioned.
• Born: Ehud Barak, 10th Prime Minister of Israel, in Mishmar HaSharon, Mandatory Palestine
• Died:
• *Grant Wood, 50, American painter known for American Gothic
• *Gordon Houston, 25, American baseball player ;

  [February 13], 1942 (Friday)

• The Battle of Palembang began near Palembang on Sumatra.
• The Battle of Pasir Panjang began in the battle for Singapore.
• The German Navy completed the Channel Dash; they managed to avoid British air and naval attacks, but both battlecruisers were seriously damaged by British sea mines.
• The British submarine Tempest was depth charged and sunk in the Gulf of Taranto by the.
• Born:
• *Carol Lynley, actress and child model, in Manhattan, New York ;
• *Peter Tork, musician and actor, in Washington, D.C.
• Died: Epitácio Pessoa, 76, 11th President of Brazil

  [February 14], 1942 (Saturday)

• The Japanese invasion of Sumatra began.
• The Battle of Pasir Panjang ended in Japanese victory.
• The Battle of Bilin River began in Burma.
• The British Air Ministry issued the Area bombing directive, ordering RAF bombers to attack the German industrial workforce and the morale of the German populace through bombing German cities and their civilian inhabitants.
• British auxiliary patrol vessel Li Wo singlehandedly attacked a Japanese convoy north of the Bangka Strait, sinking the lead transport before being herself sunk by the squadron of escorting warships.
• The British gunboat HMS Grasshopper was bombed and sunk by Japanese aircraft off Rusuk Island.
• American converted troopship SS President Taylor grounded on the coral reef at Canton Island and could not be salvaged despite extensive efforts.
• Sarawakian steamship Vyner Brooke was bombed and sunk by Japanese aircraft while evacuating nurses and wounded servicemen out of Singapore.
• German submarines U-178 and U-336 were commissioned.
• "Blues in the Night" by Woody Herman and His Orchestra topped the Billboard singles charts.
• Born: Michael Bloomberg, business magnate and 108th Mayor of New York City, in Boston, Massachusetts
• Died:
• *Mirosław Ferić, 26, Polish flying ace ;
• *Thomas Wilkinson, 43, Royal Navy Lieutenant and posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross